Financial Services Act 1986

121 Designated agencies

(1) The Secretary of State shall not make a delegation order transferring any function to a designated agency unless he is satisfied that any rules, regulations and guidance of which copies are furnished to him under section 114(9) or (10) above do not have, and are not intended or likely to have, to any significant extent the effect of restricting, distorting or preventing competition or, if they have or are intended or likely to have that effect to any significant extent, that the effect is not greater than is necessary for the protection of investors.

(2) The powers conferred by subsection (3) below shall be exercisable by the Secretary of State if at any time it appears to him that—

(a) any rules or regulations made by a designated agency in the exercise of functions transferred to it by a delegation order or any guidance issued by a designated agency;

(b) any practices of a designated agency; or

(c) any practices of persons who are subject to rules or regulations made by it in the exercise of those functions,

have, or are intended or are likely to have, to any significant extent the effect of restricting, distorting or preventing competition and that that effect is greater than is necessary for the protection of investors.

(3) The powers exercisable under this subsection are—

(a) to make an order in respect of the agency under section 115(2) above as if the circumstances were such as are there mentioned; or

(b) to direct the agency to take specified steps for the purpose of securing that the rules, regulations, guidance or practices in question do not have the effect mentioned in subsection (2) above.

(4) The practices referred to in paragraph (b) of subsection (2) above are practices of the designated agency in its capacity as such; and the practices referred to in paragraph (c) of that subsection are practices in relation to business in respect of which the persons in question are subject to any such rules or regulations as are mentioned in paragraph (a) of that subsection and which are required or contemplated by those rules or regulations or by any such guidance as is there mentioned or are otherwise attributable to the conduct of the agency in its capacity as such.